What Is SoftEtherVPN vs OpenVPN

SoftEtherVPN is an alternative to OpenVPN. Like OpenVPN, SoftEtherVPN is open source, having made the transition in January of this year. This VPN protocol is claimed to be faster than OpenVPN. It foils deep packet inspection and can be run through most firewalls. The NAT-traversal built into the protocol is designed for this. The protocol uses Ethernet over HTTPS, so it’s hidden from inspection, making it a viable option for those who need to get through a firewall without being detected as using a VPN, or who simply don’t want to deal with configuring a firewall to allow VPN access.

New Offering

CactusVPN has started offering SoftEtherVPN as one of its connection options for users. It is compatible with most of the devices on the market today, including mobile devices. It also supports routers, so it can be configured at that level.

SoftEtherVPN was developed in Japan. It comes with a client that you can use to connect to a VPN server if you don’t have access to this protocol through your VPN provider. It might be worth testing out for those who are rolling their own VPNs. Being open source, it’s free to download and use and could be an interesting alternative to OpenVPN.

Alternatives to Big Names

In addition to being billed as a faster alternative to OpenVPN, SoftEtherVPN is billed as an alternative to Microsoft VPN servers. This might come as welcome news to network administrators who want to configure remote access, as there’s no charge involved in using this software at all, meaning that there’s one more open source option out there for people who don’t want to use a proprietary software with all the attendant expenses and restrictions that go along with doing so.

SoftEtherVPN is billed as having fast throughput, being very low on processor demand and offering secure encryption. It very well may become the latest thing offered by most VPN providers and, for those who have trouble with OpenVPN connections and who want something less demanding than IPsec, it could be very useful.

The software is currently available in Japanese, English and simplified Chinese. It has a GUI that allows the user to configure their settings, so those uncomfortable with working from the command line can still get it up and running. It has plenty of other security features, all of which you can check out at the homepage for the project.